| Most anti-US sentiment didn't arise in a vacuum, and I'm sure that you as an avid student of history know that. The end result is an almost rapacious (and in many cases unjustified -- I agree with you) suspicion of U.S. motives and actions. The U.S. isn't just the biggest kid on the block, it is effectively the Bloc. :)
I don't have a problem with U.S. opinion, but I do vehemently oppose the U.S.'s sole opinions being forced on other sovereign nations via political or military muscle. If the U.S. decrees $ISSUE to be X, that's fine. But if the U.S. alone decrees $ISSUE to be X in a place other than the U.S., there are occasions where flipping the bird at that kind of sanctimonious stance is the only appropriate response.
As for imperialism, a subtle, evolved form of that has existed since the end of WW2: U.S. military bases exist all over the planet, and the presence of those bases exert an influence that cannot be ignored by the leaders of hosting and neighbouring nations.
All in all, I view the U.S. as the world leader in things political and military, and it has an enormous degree of influence everywhere. It's neither the White Knight (as some would have it) nor the Great Satan (as others would have it) but rather something in between, quite powerful yet fallible, and bearing close watching. |
